Margaret Alkek Williams: Donor Grants
/SOURCE OF WEALTH: NA
FUNDING AREAS: Medical, Education & Youth, Religious, Arts & Culture
OVERVIEW: Margaret Alkek Williams and family move philanthropy through the Albert and Margaret Alkek Foundation, which provides support for charitable, religious, scientific (primarily medical), cultural and educational organizations and programs serving the people of the state of Texas. Williams also helms the Alkek and Williams Foundation, which makes grants almost exclusively to arts and culture organizations in Texas.
BACKGROUND: Margaret Alkek Williams studied acting at Stanford University and earned a music degree at the University of Texas. She is the daughter of the late Albert Alkek, who co-launched the Sinclair Alkek Company, building Texas's first petroleum products pipeline.
ISSUES:
MEDICAL: The family through the Albert and Margaret Alkek Foundation has directed more than $100 million to Baylor College of Medicine, home to the Margaret M. and Albert B. Alkek Building for the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, meanwhile, houses the Albert B. and Margaret M. Alkek Hospital. The foundation made a $1 million donation to UNICEF, extending the work of Mark Kline and the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative at Texas Children's Hospital to Malawi and Uganda. It also made a $1 million grant that established the Project Heart Endowment Fund at Texas Heart Institute. Other grantees have included Methodist Hospital Foundation and Briarwood-Brookwood, a “God-centered educational, residential, and entrepreneurial community for adults with functional disabilities.”
EDUCATION & YOUTH: Grantees have included Depelchin Children’s Center, Texas State University, and St. Mary's University of San Antonio, Texas.
ARTS & CULTURE: Much like her late mother, Alkek Williams has a lifelong passion for arts and culture. She’s made donations and been involved with Houston Grand Opera, Houston Ballet, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Society for the Performing Arts, Houston Symphony, the Alley Theatre and Theatre Under The Stars. She pledged $5 million to help build the Houston Ballet Center for Dance, and she gave Houston Grand Opera $4 million to establish a general director's chair.
RELIGIOUS: Grantees have included St Christopher’s Episcopal Church, and Bandera County Young Life.
LOOKING FORWARD: Expect the family to continue with their steady focus on Houston in their giving.
CONTACT:
The Alkek and Williams Foundation
1100 Louisiana St., Ste. 5250
Houston, TX United States 77002-5100
Albert and Margaret Alkek Foundation
1100 Louisiana, Suite 5250
Houston, Texas 77002
LINK: Grant Guidelines
